Operational Art, Design and the Center of Gravity Pt. 1 of 4

The video begins by introducing the concepts of operational art, operational design, and the center of gravity. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the difference between art and science in military planning. Art is described as subjective, nonlinear, and holistic, focusing on the journey, while science is objective, linear, and reductionist, aiming for a clear destination. Both are crucial in military planning, with conceptual planning leaning more towards art and detailed planning towards science.

Science in a military context involves acquiring knowledge and is black and white. Art, on the other hand, is about creative performance and arranging scientific principles to create something new that is either effective or ineffective. The speaker uses the analogy of music, where the symbols and rules are the science, but composing a piece like 'Ode to Joy' requires an artist. Thus, effective military art requires proficiency in military science.

The levels of war are defined by functions rather than echelons or geographic areas. The strategic level involves decision-making on objectives and overall strategy. The operational level focuses on executing strategy through campaigns and major operations, tackling 'what' questions. The tactical level addresses 'how' questions, concentrating on mission execution. Staff officers contribute at all levels, formulating policy, developing operational plans, and assisting with mission execution.

Operational art is a cognitive, conceptual thinking process, often called 'conceptual planning,' which involves visualizing solutions and actions to problems. It precedes detailed plans and is not a level of war but rather a commander's mental activity. It serves as an umbrella term for methodologies and techniques used for thinking, resulting in an operational approach that bridges a commander's conceptual planning and a staff officer's detailed planning. Operational art primarily answers 'what' questions about objectives, actions, timing, resources, and risks.

Operational art asks 'what do you want done', while detailed planning addresses 'how you want it done'. It's crucial to understand that operational art is a cognitive process, distinct from the operational level of war, which is a physical location where campaigns are planned and executed. Operational art exists at all levels of war, with its greatest utility at the operational level, where doctrine deals more with 'what to do' rather than 'how to do things'.